Till all are one
by XxImmortalWraithxX
Summary: Before they found Earth, before they escaped Cybertron, we take a walk into the past, a long forgotten past. My first fan fic, rate and review. Ironhide/OC
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A/N: This is my first fan fiction story! Please read! Rate and review to tell me how I am doing! Do give suggestions! I welcome both suggestions and criticisms. If there are spelling errors, do give feedback!

PS I DO NOT OWN TRANSFORMERS but I do own my OCs.

_He was in some place, some place where he could not pinpoint. His surroundings were white, he seemed to be suspended. Time had slowed and ceased to exist. Too white, he decided. I must be dreaming, he thought. Slowly, the whiteness faded and his surroundings gave way to a planet. A strange grey planet. A planet made from metal. Interesting, he thought. The planet seemed really familiar, what was the name of the planet? Cyber-, cyber-tron? He gave up remembering. Suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed into his processors, his surroundings changing again. This time, the magnificent place disappeared and the place, wherever it was, darkened. A pair of red optics stared back at him. Ruby red, watching him. He prepared his cannons and waited for the usual whirling and starting up. As if able to predict his thoughts, the red optics vaporized his cannons. His cannons! His most prized possessions. He could hear someone calling his name in the background. Slag it, he thought, just as the place collapsed. _

XxXxX

Back at Kaon…

Starscream paced about in the corridor outside Megatron's office, rehearsing what he was to say to Lord Megatron about the recent failure. Megatron was furious, almost ballistic. The failure to destroy Iacon had left Megatron raging. It sure was not a good way to start off in the morning. The failure to kill Optimus Prime only fueled his rage. Things were not looking good for Starscream.

"Starscream!" came the infuriated bellow from Megatron's office.

Starscream mentally prepared himself before stepping into Megatron's office. Dark, ruby red optics were boring into him, penetrating his processors. He knelt down in front of the raging warlord.

"Um, my Lord, the attack on Iacon was not a complete failure as-"Starscream tried to pacify Megatron.

"Shut the frag up, you pit-spawned glitchhead. I sent you out on a simple mission to attack and kill Optimus and you failed. Not only have made a fool out of my army, you wasted my precious resources," Megatron roared in fury, sneering at his second-in-command.

"My Lord, the Autobots were too strong. I gave it my best shot. At least we brought back several prisoners. Key personnel, I might add," Starscream sneered.

"They had better be," Megatron muttered under his breath before leaving his throne.

"This way, my Lord," Starscream lead the way to the holding cells.

XxXxX

_The morning dawned on Iacon, the Sun spilling its rays on the skyline, illuminating the buildings. A beautiful morning, he thought to himself. As usual, the Autobot headquarters was a hive of activity. Mechs were rushing everywhere, just as the morning shift began. He made his way to the command center as he was instructed to do so by his commanding officer, Sentinel Prime. When he arrived, he sent out a polite ping to Sentinel, indicating his presence. Several breems later, the doors opened and Sentinel Prime walked out, cradling a youngling in his arms. _

_"General Ironhide, this youngling will in be in your care as of now. You will be his temporary guardian until his parents return." Sentinel Prime instructed the black mech. _

_Sentinel Prime must have seen the disappointment and irritation register on Ironhide's face even though he tried his best to subdue it. The black mech had anticipated a new mission, not a source of...trouble._

_"Is there a problem, General? Surely a mech of your capabilities would be capable enough to wage war against the Decepticons and take care of a youngling at the same time?" Sentinel Prime questioned sternly, attracting the stares of curios passers-by. _

_It took a moment for Ironhide to fully comprehend what Sentinel was hitting on. His pride. _

_He felt his inner temperature increase and his vents hitched. His reputation as one of the best generals in the Autobot army would be ruined if he fails to watch over the youngling. And he would never allow that to happen. _

_"Yes sir!" He snapped to attention._

_Much as Ironhide wanted to protest as he had wanted to spend his time with a femme named Chromia, orders took priority and he obeyed. _

_Sentinel placed the young mech on the ground and the mech ran towards Ironhide excitedly. _

_Ironhide repositioned himself such that his helm was at eye level with the youngling, evaluating the youngling. _

_"What's your designation, youngling?" Ironhide tried his best to sound non-threatening. _

_The young mech blinked his optics. "Designation? You mean name?" _

_"Yes, your name." Ironhide probed. _

_"My name is Orion Pax, but everyone keeps calling me Optimus Prime." The young mech replied with a hint of wariness. _

_The name took a moment to register in Ironhide's processor and when he fully comprehended, his systems hitched. _

_A Prime! The youngling was the future of the Autobots. Ironhide swore to his spark to protect Optimus at all costs. _

_"Ironhide, the sparkling will be staying at your quarters. Be sure to act like a guardian around Optimus. " Sentinel intruded._

_The black mech sighed to himself as he proceeded to return to his quarters. The youngling had clung on to his frame, wrapping his arms around his guardian's neck. _

_"Ironhide? I am hungry and I think I need some energon, can you bring me to the rec room?" Optimus pleaded as they exited the lift. _

_The black mech checked his energon levels and felt that he too needed a cup of energon. _

_The rec room was thinning out and Ironhide had no problem finding a table for them. Just as they finished getting their cups of energon, a voice shouted out from across the room. _

_"Hey 'Hide, since when did ya get a sparkling? This one looks extremely cool with red and blue hues." Ironhide recognized that it was the voice of Jazz. _

_His growled angrily at the taunt and his engine gave an angry rev. Optimus look kinda amused. Jazz left his place and zoomed across, narrowly missing the weapon specialist and picked up the youngling with one hand while doing a twist, pulling the youngling towards his chest. _

_ "Aw, this is such a cute one, where ya get him from?" He nuzzled Optimus, stroking Optimus' helm affectionately. Optimus must have been shocked by the sudden intrusion of Jazz, he escaped Jazz's grasp and clung onto Ironhide's leg, refusing to let go. Soon, sobs could be heard coming from Optimus. _

_He must have been traumatized, Ironhide thought._

_Turning to glare at the silver junior saboteur, he nestled Optimus into his chest using one arm. Readying the cannon on his free arm, he growled._

_"If you make him cry again, I am going to friggin tear you apart," he threatened the minibot. _

_Jazz immediately adopted a submissive posture to pacify the furious warrior. He dipped his helm and took a step back. _

_"I am sorry, Ironhide, I didn't mean ta scare ya youngling. Optimus, do ya forgive meh?" Jazz asked, his voice laced with concern and regret. _

_Optimus stopped sobbing and looked at the minibot and smiled. _

End of chapter 1!

How is this so far? Rate and review for more chapters! Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

_Flashback:_

_Ironhide brought the youngling back to his quarters at the end of his shift. The youngling was supposed to stay at his quaters for the time being. Ironhide never considered himself to be a guardian of any sort, let alone to have a sparkling. His youth was fading, yes, but he prefered to think of himself as a much feared Autobot general, one that made Decepticons shiver in fear. He looked down at his frame, eyeing Optimus as he let out a deep sigh. Optimus was tired and he had slipped into recharge while still magnetized to his guardian's frame. Gently, Ironhide place the youngling down on the berth before making his way to the rec room. He needed a good dose of energeon before recharging. _

_The rec room was not very crowded at night but there will still some mechs there. The atmosphere in the room was rather upbeat, considering that most o__ f the mechs were on high grade after a hard day of work. Making his way to the energeon dispenser, Ironhide caught sight of a beautiful femme. Her armor was a light blue, the hue of the sky. She was attractive and he found that he could not take his optics off her. She must have noticed as she turned around, smiling at him. He would never forget her smile. Feeling embarrassed for being caught staring, he hastily walked to the energeon dispenser, trying to brush his feelings for her aside. After retrieving his cup of plain grade, his made his way to an empty table, hoping to be left in peace. _

_The war with Megatron had taken its toll on many Autobots, including ones that he knew and loved. His femme creator was brutally killed off by Blackout and his father was a high-grade addict. For a moment, he just let his mind aimlessly wander. He lived in a shack when he was young. He remembered that his father did not really care for him and his brother. His father used to come home intoxicated and would beat the slag out of Ironhide when he lost his temper. The memories of those violent times had left him shaken to his core. He could not remember much of his mother. He shook his helm, clearing his thoughts and thought about his twin brother. All that is left is him and his brother, Steelhead. And now, even he is lost. Lost in the ashes of war, sands of time. Steelhead had gone missing on a mission during the war. Communications with him had been cut off and the Autobots have lost contact with his team. Ironhide refused to accept it at first, denying that fact, but gradually allowed the truth to sink in as the bond broke. _

_There had been so much hate, so much anger and guilt in his whole life. That sent a stab of pain through his processor. Gotta get a grip, he told himself. Sometimes, he wished that he had been gone with his brother. Better to die with his only kin than to survive with remorse. His mind drifted off to his team. The team he commanded. The team that depended on his leadership and guidance to make it out alive. Pushing these thoughts out of his mind, he sipped on his energeon, unaware that two femmes were oberserving him from a distance. _

_Suddenly, a flash of blue and red appeared right next to him. He looked up, startled to see two femmes standing beside him. He was aware that most mechs were paying some attention to him now. Getting a femme was a hard task during the war. Being with one was a dream._

_"Hi, may we join you?" The red one started, flashing an alluring smile._

_He felt his frame heat up as he stuttered. He had never stuttered before. What was wrong with him? He made a mental note to talk to Ratchet about it sometime later. _

_"Y-, Yeah," he mumbled._

_The two femmes just laughed and he caught one saying how cute he was. He blushed._

_"Name's Arcee, that's Chromia, what about you?" the red one continued, taking a seat next to him._

_"Ironhide," he answered. The two femmes were stunned into silence._

**_::Primus, he is Ironhide?! I can't believe that I am actually talking to him! He is not bad looking afterall, and I heard that the femmes under his command are totally crushing on him.:: _**_Chromia said through a comm. link with Arcee._

**_::He is pretty cute, stuttering like that. I think that he likes you, though I also think he is pretty attractive. Someone like him being your sparkmate? I just can't imagine it. You are fraggin lucky, 'Mia.:: _**_Arcee shot back._

_"So, Ironhide, what is your job around here?" Chromia asked the big, bulky black mech. _

_"I have a team and we are frontliners. Though sometimes Special Ops give us side missions," he said, optics dimming. _

_"Really? A team? You must be hell of a mech. So, Chromia and I have just joined the Autobots and we really want to kick some Decepti-ass. Mind taking us out later, General?" Arcee pouted. _

_"You have to speak with Sentinel first. He will decide," Ironhide said, voice free of inflection._

_"Alright then, see you later, handsome," Arcee said, kissing Ironhide on the cheekplate. He was stunned, he had never expected femmes to take an interest in him. Not that he was unattractive, just that he does not come across as caring and gentle. _

_He felt the tension in the room soar as she kissed him. On the cheek. In front of others. One of the mechs, a neutral, left his seat and headed for Ironhide's direction, obviously drunk. He stopped in front of Arcee, glaring at Ironhide. _

_"Look, Autobot, this here is my femme. If you try and take her, I will send you to the Pit. So stay away from her, slagger." he cursed loudly, fists clenched. _

_"I am NOT your femme, Bulkhead, and go away," Arcee hissed, her vents flaring minutely. _

_"Oh, so the slaggin' scum retaliates now, eh?" the green mech hissed, spitting at Arcee. She flinched at his assault and punched him in his jaw. _

_The green mech was obviously angered, and reached out to hit Arcee. Bulkhead was well built, but not as tough as Ironhide. Arcee prepared herself from the blow as she knew that Bulkhead had competed in the gladiatorial games before. Instead, the blow never came. She onlined her optics and found herself staring. _

_Ironhide had grabbed Bulkhead's hand before it came down and expertly seperated Arcee from Bulkhead. Before Bulkhead could retaliate, Ironhide knocked out his legs, causing him to fall to the ground, pinning him down. He leaned further down, until they were optic to optic. _

_"That is not the right way to treat a femme, mech. You are lucky that I have not teared you to parts," Ironhide growled, his engine revving angrily. _

_"Who do you think you are, Autoscum?" Bulkhead taunted. _

_"I am General Ironhide and you will address me as such, mech. Now get your aft out of here before I shred you," his deep tenor voice dangerously edged, rumbled with the wrath of God. _

_By now, a group of mechs have already congregated around the two mechs. Bulkhead's anger was now gone, replaced by a lick of fear. Someone that high in the authority chain could easily throw Bulkhead out of the camp and leave him to the Decepticons. Hastily, Bulkhead backed up, turned and ran out of the rec room without looking back. _

_He could hear the background murmuring as the crowd slowly dispersed. Arcee looks a bit shaken while Chromia comforted her. He turned to face Arcee who bowed to her saviour._

_"Good orn, Arcee and Chromia." _

A/N: Awwww, more fluff coming your way! Rate and review, it really helps a LOT. A LOT. I will update soon! ~XxImmortalWrathxX


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

A/N: OMG! Thank you so much, Nefretari, for being my first reviewer! Gosh, I will definitely edit more. Thank you so much for reading! And now to a chapter of fluffs, but with a different mech XD.

_Flashback:_

_Ironhide returned to his quarters after the whole fiasco, feeling disgusted by the whole fiasco that just happened. He keyed in the code to his quarters and the doors opened with a mechanical hiss. Looking at Optimus who was still recharging in his berth, he shook his horned helm and sat on a chair and looked at Optimus thoughtfully. The youngling was in deep recharge and Ironhide pulled up Optimus' biodata file from the Autobot battle net. Optimus had a brother, a brother called Megatron. This is interesting, he noted and slipped off into recharge. _

_His dreams were haunted. He was staring off into Unircron's snarling visage. _

_I will kill you, demon! Unicron snarled, baring his glossa. _

_Not today, Con! He spitted at Unicron's helm. _

_He activated his cannons, shocked to find himself paralyzed. He could not feel his arms or legs. _

_Foolish Autoscum, you think I am an idiot? I made sure to neutralize you. Unicron smirked, a evil glint in his ruby red optics. _

_Unicron launched himself forward towards Ironhide, a retractable energeon sword ejecting from his left arm. Suddenly, a bright blue light shone from behind Ironhide, striking Unicron and dissolving him into bits. _

_Children of my enemy, you will pay! He roared before vanishing into a bright light, disappearing. _

_Rest now, my child. A deep bass voice commanded, before the blue light faded. Ironhide did not fight the drowsiness that clamped his mind. _

_\_

_Ironhide was in deep recharge when he felt something crawl up his frame. Something warm and small. His combat system booted immidiately, analyzing the thing that was on his frame. It could be a Decepticon cassette. Preparing himself, his suddenly onlined his optics and moved quickly, grabbing the form off his frame and activating the cannon on his other arm. A shrilling sound pierced his audio receptors and he recognized that the small form was none other than Optimus. He immidiately deactivated his cannons and let his hand fall to his side. _

_"Optimus?" He said gently. _

_It was too much for Optimus to bear and he started to keen. Ironhide mentally berated himself for scaring the poor youngling. Gently, he cuddled Optimus to his chassis. The warm thrumming of his spark seemed to comfort Optimus and he stopped crying. _

_"I am sorry, Optimus," Ironhide mumbled. Optimus let out a little shrill. _

_"For scaring you like that," Ironhide replied, stroking the youngling's helm. _

_Realizing that Optimus' tanks might have been empty, he decided to stop by the rec room before heading off to the weapon testing range. Placing the little mech on the ground, Ironhide let the youngling lead him. Optimus was looking around, taking in visual information. The rec room was nearly empty as it was still very early in the morning. Holding Optimus' up to let him dispense energeon, he held his hand to his helm to receive an incoming comm. message._

**_::Ironhide, report to the Med Bay now for your routine maintenance exam. And don't tell me you are still recharging. I have your vitals.:: _**_Ratchet's voice boomed. _

**_::Primus, you are still as slaggin irritating, Hatchet. I have a … youngling to take care of. Should I bring him?::_**_Ironhide grunted._

**_::Call me that again and I will weld your lip plates shut. Bring the youngling along.:: _**_came the reply. _

_"Optimus, Ratchet wants to see us at the Med bay. We will be going there later." Ironhide said softly. _

_His engine gave a gentle croon when Optimus held out a cup of energeon for him. He could get used to loving this youngling._

_"Thank you, Optimus," he said, giving Optimus a pat. Optimus let out an excited shrill. Looking around, he combat systems alerted him as they singled out a mech. Bulkhead. _

_Ironhide cursed and tasked his combat systems to monitor this…troublesome mech while attending to Optimus. His systems screamed a warning at him when Bulkhead headed for his direction. He tensed and Optimus must have noticed as his helm perked up. The green mech came to a stop before the General before looking at him with warm orange optics. _

_"Um, I just wanted to apologize for what happened yesterday night," he stuttered. _

_"Its nothing," Ironhide replied neutrally. _

_The green mech's vent flared and his optics dilated. _

_"Thank you," he bowed his helm and turned and left. _

_Once Optimus was done, Ironhide brought him to the med bay. When the doors opened, a smaller mech ran out and a metal wrench flew through the opening. Moving as quickly as his bulky frame would allow, he shielded the youngling and felt the impact on his back. Turning to face Ratchet, he strode over and grabbed Ratchet and shoved the CMO against the wall. _

_"Tricks like that are NOT welcome near younglings," he growled with the fury of God in his voice. _

_"Yes sir," Ratchet replied submissively._

_"If this happens again, you will answer to my cannons, is it clear?" Ironhide's engine gave an angry rev. _

_Ratchet nodded his helm and relaxed when the grip on him was released. He brushed his digit over a panel on the wall and a berth extended from the wall. _

_"On there, now. Don't make me use restraints," the CMO ordered._

_Sighing, Ironhide obliged and high pitched shrill reminded everyone that Optimus was still in the room. Ratchet bent down to oberserve the youngling. _

_"Primus, Ironhide, this youngling should have language packs installed already. You are such a negligent guardian," Ratchet shook his head._

_"Me? I am not the slaggin CMO," the black mech snorted indignantly. _

_"One moment, youngling, I will have to fix Ironhide first," Ratchet put the youngling back on the ground. _

_Taking out a wrench from subspace, Ratchet used it to gesture towards Ironhide. _

_"Slagger, you will remain on the berth and listen to my orders. Try anything stupid and I will put a dent in your thick helm." The chartreuse CMO snapped, optics glinting. _

_Sighing, the big black mech nodded. Huffing, the CMO did a quick scan before moving onto mino repairs. Ironhide watched Ratchet operate, skilled fingers moving over his frame quickly and deftly. For a moment, Ironhide did not want to admit it but it felt … good. He was warm and comfortable in his current position. As quickly as it had started, Ratchet was done. Stepping back to give the bulky mech space, Ratchet took a closer look at the Autobot General standing in front of him. Ironhide was a pretty good looking mech, considering his broad chest and his wide jawline. His movements were of liquid grace and it was unusual for such a big mech. Ratchet's spark started fluttering and pulsing stronger at the thought of him … Wait, he was feeling affection for Ironhide? Shaking his helm, he was positive that he was glitching. Pushing his emotions aside, he focused back on the youngling._

_Picking up Optimus, he inserted his cable into the appropirate node on Optimus' neck. Stroking the youngling's back to calm him down, Ratchet transferred the language packs to Optimus. Turning around to take a look at Ironhide, he was shocked to find him smiling. The smile alone was strong enough to knock the tension cables in the CMO's leg loose. He no longer felt as steady on his pedes as he was and felt himself falling backwards with the youngling in his arms._

_Strong, warm arms caught the medic and brought him closer to a thrumming chassis. He felt warmth and comfort radiating off the mech that had caught him. Until he knew who the mech was. He was staring up to optics that ranged from sky blue to a deep intense cobalt blue, deep and unfanthomable. Optics that were blazing with blue angelic fire yet also felt icy cold at the same time. Ironhide's optics were mesmerizing. And I did not just think that, Ratchet berated himself. He also noted that Ironhide's touch was gentle and refined. Oh, what a fine sparkmate he would make. Ratchet never had feelings for any mechs until now. _

_"Are you alright, Ratch?" came the soothing baritone voice from above him. _

_Ratchet realized that he had been so comfortably lying in 'Hide's arms that he was dozing off._

_"Y-, Yes, I just need more recharge," Ratchet lied. Ironhide just chuckled. _

_"Does Optimus have language packs now?" asked the black mech gently._

_"Papa!" Optimus lunged at Ironhide, colliding with his leg, forcing the black mech to step back. Stroking Optimus affectionately, his engine gave a gentle croon. Seeing that coming from a mech built for war, Ratchet thought that maybe Ironhide had a soft side under that thick, bulky armor. Maybe. And that maybe he would be the lucky one to claim to be 'Hide's sparkmate. _

A/N: Now that was really unexpected eh?

**Ratchet: *shakes helm* seriously? r u out of yur mind, XxImmortalWraithxX?**

**Me: *takes wrench and throw it* Leave Reviews!**

** *smiles innocently* its greatly appreciated!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

A/N: Primus! I have got 7 slaggin' reviews so far! (7 is my FAV number!) Oh my god! THANK YOU SO MUCH to **Storylovers91**, **FrostFire18, Blizzardstorm21 and Autobotgirl2234(guest)! **And now, on to the next chapter you are all waiting for!

_After their checkup with Ratchet was completed, Ironhide led Optimus to the training room. Along the way, Optimus was pretty happy that he could speak. And he was chattering on and off, sounding much like Bluestreak, another youngling. Suppressing a chuckle, Ironhide brought the youngling to the training range. _

_The training range was a long and huge room and was located in the lower levels of the Autobot Headquarters. There were targets in one part of the room and a firing range was on the other. The glow of the lighting was gentle and soothing. Normally, the range would be swarming with mechs trying to show off their skills and weaponry. However, the training range was unusually empty and silent today. Rows and rows of weaponry, ranging from front-line weapons to heavy-duty rocket launchers, were displayed on the walls in the room. Pressing a digit to the metal wall, a hidden row of weapons extended with an audible hiss. Secured to the panel were 2 extremely large and bulky weapons that resembled really heavy duty rocket launchers, none that Optimus had ever seen before. Seeing his charge's optics dilate, he grinned as he unloaded his current cannons and tried on those on the panel. Very gently putting his current cannons on the floor, he placed the "new" cannons onto the appropriate nodes on his wrist, activating the clamp sequence. A loud hiss of nitrogen with a resonating click sound signaled the union. Unable to conceal the smile that was threatening his faceplates, he recalibrated his combat systems to sync with the new weapons he had acquired. Firing off a couple of shots at the dummies, the projectiles collided with a mighty force of destruction, totally demolishing the row of dummies. Proud of the destruction he was able to achieve, he fired off a couple more shots, more for show-off then for training. _

_"Tsk tsk, and who is going to fix all that?" came a high-pitched voice from the doorway. _

_Spinning around with his cannons still whirring, he stood to face the intruder. His face fell after knowing who it was._

_"That is going to fix itself," he grumbled, annoyance lacing his voice. _

_"Just as stubborn as ever," she said, giving him the evil eye. _

_"How did you get in here? I used my private codes to lock the doors," Ironhide practically growled at the unwanted intrusion._

_"With help from Jazz," she said, smirking. _

_Shaking his helm, Ironhide turned back to the targets in the room. Activating a new subroutine, the holograms shivered before disappearing, then reactivating a breem later in different positions. Raising his cannons, he found himself cut off by Warheart and her rifle. Engine growling in anger, he attempted to push aside the annoying femme and carry on his training. However, Warheart was faster and she landed a couple of shots on the targets, the holograms shivering and dissipating. He had never gotten well with her, not even on a simple patrol. Not that she was unattractive, just that she was contesting against him for the role of weapons specialist. No mech in the whole army has ever dared to compete against him for anything, or they risk a torn off limb or worse. Her arrogance just seemed to tick Ironhide off as she even thought of herself as an equal to him. He would never mind if she compared herself to someone else. And that really made him angry. Grabbing her by her neck, he pulled her back, only to find out it was a wrong decision. A breem later, he felt a blow to his mandibles and another blow to his tanks. Roaring in anger, he dropped her and whirled up both of his cannons. _

_"Don't you ever dare touch me, mech!" she snapped at him, making a dent in his armor using her energeon dagger. _

_"Then don't come in here! Get out of MY training room!" he roared back, both in pain and agony. _

_"Fine! Glitch you!" she spun on her pedes and turned to leave. A black arm shot forth, grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around. Warheart found herself staring into crimson optics and glowing cannons. _

_"Use that language around my charge and you won't live to see tomorrow," his voice was dangerously perched. When she did not respond, his cannons whirred faster and she could feel the heat radiating off them. Nodding, she quickly escaped his clutches and ran off, swearing to never meet him again. _

_Optimus was really scared of what was happening. His guardian was really calm and then a femme entered. His guardian literally blew his top and threatened the femme. The femme had hurt his guardian with a knife of some sort. As quietly as he could, he ran off to a corner and cowered, trying to make himself invisible so that she would not hurt him. _

_"Optimus? Optimus, where are you?" he recognized the voice as his guardian. Letting out a keen, he let the tears flow and started sobbing. _

_"What's wrong?" he found himself hoisted by a black servo. For a moment, he just wanted to curl into a ball and hide. _

_"She hurt you, I don't want anyone to get hurt," he said between sobs. _

_"Hush, it takes a lot more to hurt a mech like me, and I will never let her hurt you, Optimus," he whispered, powering down his weapons. _

_The little form in his servos eventually stopped trembling and poked his helm out. _

_"Can I try too?" was the curious reply. _

_Gruffly chuckling, he nodded and placed the youngling down. Running to the row of weapons, he pointed at various ones he wanted to use. _

_"We are going to start with something smaller today," he said and pulled a smaller rifle designed for younglings. Optimus gingerly accepted the weapon, optics scrutinizing the new weapon on his hands. Ushering Optimus to the firing bench, he walked the youngling through the basics of handling a weapon. At the end of the joor, he let Optimus fire some rounds to test out the weapon. The youngling had enjoyed it tremendously and was asking him when they could return. _

_After Ironhide left…_

_Ratchet stared at the door as it hissed shut behind Ironhide and the youngling. What in the name of Primus was going on just now, he questioned himself. He could never forget the way the black mech held him, his danger-eager optics, and his warm voice. Staring off into a portion of space, he was so absorbed in his recount that he forgot he shared the office with First Aid. Noticing his mentor spacing out, First Aid approached with trepidation and touched Ratchet's shoulder plate, only to have a wrench ramming into his helm. He backed away immediately, rubbing his helm miserably. _

_"First Aid? Are you alright?" Ratchet asked with concern. _

_First Aid was further taken aback by the worry in Ratchet's voice. That was so unlike the snappy and brusque CMO First Aid had known. _

_"Are you glitching?" He asked, really intrigued. This could really be a good case study for him. _

_"What? I am functioning at optimum level, why?" Ratchet asked, staring off again into space. _

_First Aid concluded that Ratch the Hatch was glitching. And he did the best he could to solve the problem. _

_A while later, loud screaming and crashes could be heard from the Med Bay. Mechs passing by stared in curiosity. A moment later, a white figure resembling First Aid could be seen rushing out from the Med Bay in a hurry. Following suit was a blur of chartreuse with a metallic object in its grip. _

_"What did I say about that nickname, First Aid?" was the same old gruff voice of the Hatchet._

_Sighing, surrounding mechs shook their helms and returned to their duties. This kind of day with ol' Ratchet was going to be very normal. _

_First Aid shuddered at the sight of the raging CMO and mentally prepared himself for the blow that came next. Only that it never came. He onlined his optics, only to find a black figure standing in front of him, restraining Ratchet's hand. Expertly separating the two medics, the black mech's hand dove down into a node on Ratchet's hip, causing the medic's legs to buckle and fail. Putting a restraining hand on Ratchet's chest, he whispered into the medic's audio receptors._

_"You should not oppose me, Ratch," was the smooth and husky reply. And that was enough to stop the medic in his warpath. He leaned back and did not fight the blackness that swallowed his mind and slowly offlined his optics. _

A/N: Awww, I will leave you with a cliffie! Rate and Review! Its greatly appreciated! And guess how 'Mia reacts in the next chapter. o.O Till now, I'm out!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

A/N: Guys, I am so sorry for not updating in like 2 weeks. I am such a horrible person. So this is what happened when I couldn't update:

_He sat in the classroom, the air conditioner humming in the background. The Math Teacher gave out the test and the clock started running. "You think you can defeat me, punk? I am the almighty Math and I will rule over you, squishy!" Math exclaimed, throwing a quadratic equation at the boy for the first question. Taking out his trusty calculator, the boy punched in the keys and took out his brand new flexible curve and started drawing a graph. "Hah! The boy is clever, but he won't get past this!" Math then threw questions on set theories at the boy. The boy tried to solve them all but to no avail. "You think you can beat me? I am Math! And I am INVINCIBLE!" Math roared in laughter over the boy's inadequacy in Math. _

So that was what happened…OMG! Another review, follow and favorite from FrostFire18! I am so lucky to get so many reviews from you guyz! And now I will go on!

**_Systems booting. _**

**_{Start Bootcamp}_**

**_Checksum completed, no errors detected._**

**_Index registries online, functioning at 92%. _**

**_Memory files partially recovered, Error 2519._**

**_Firewalls functional, CPU functional. _**

**_{Bootcamp complete}_**

_Ratchet's CPU sluggishly booted up, his internal fans warming up. Cybertronian characters flashed across his vision as the programming warmed up. The characters then split up and his optics onlined, the blackness vanishing. He was in a med bay, to be more exact, his medbay. Groaning, he tried to sit up and as he shifted his posture, he felt something tugging at his right arm. Turning around, he saw a horned helm and froze. Ironhide had fallen asleep on him, leaning on the berth. That meant that he probably cared for Ratchet and that he had waited for Ratchet to wake up. A new feeling coursed through Ratchet's circuits, making him feel warm and fuzzy. It was good to be treasured and loved by someone. Being careful not to awaken the sleeping mech beside him, he cautiously shifted his arm to support himself. Immediately, the black mech beside him shot up, cannons activated, optics wild. Putting a hand on his friend's shoulder, Ratchet got off the berth and steadied himself on his pedes. _

_"You should rest more, Doc," advised the black mech. _

_"I don't need to rest, I have patients to tend to," the chartreuse medic grumbled. _

_Ratchet considered making a run for the exit, since he was pretty quick in the battlefield at least. He judged the distance and formulated a plan. Taking a wrench out of subspace, he deliberately threw it and missed Ironhide, distracting the mech for a breem. And then he ran. _

_"Where are you going, Ratch?" Ironhide's arm shot out before Ratchet could get past, pulling the CMO closer to his spark chamber. _

_Ratchet felt his spark flutter and flare due to the proximity of their sparks. Pulling Ironhide closer, he let out a low groan of pleasure as a searing hot sensation coursed through his frame. Chuckling, Ironhide ran his down Ratchet's spinal struts, making the CMO shiver and jerk at the intimate contact. After what seemed like eternity, the black mech relaxed his grip and took a step back, a certain glint in his optics. _

_"You took care of my charge, didn't you?" He chuckled lightly, eyeing the CMO curiously. _

_"Yes, I did," Ratchet replied voice uncertain obviously still recovering from the close interaction a breem ago. _

_The doors to the Med Bay hissed open and Zeta Prime walked in, his armor flaring slightly. Upon the sight of a commanding officer, the two mechs in the room straightened to attention, optics glinting with reverence. Zeta was hardly seen in Iacon, let alone the headquarters. Zeta eyed the CMO in the room wearily before turning his attention to the black mech. _

_"And you must be Ironhide?" he asked, voice cautious. _

_"Yes sir," Ironhide straightened at the tenor of the command in Zeta's tone._

_"The High Council requires both your sparkling and your presence. You have an orn to prepare before departure. Do not be late," Zeta said before exiting the room, leaving both mechs gaping. _

_"Of everyone to choose they chose you," the medic grumbled, pointing an accusatory digit at Ironhide. _

_"What? Something wrong with that?" he raised his servos in self-defense. _

_Weakly shaking his head, Ratchet sighed and returned to his desk. Seeing that there is nothing left to do, Ironhide decided to exit the room to find his sparkling. _

_Wondering idly around the halls, Ironhide tried to think of something to past his time. He had an orn after all. Walking to the elevator, a flash of blue crossed his vision. Bemused, he canted his head and looked at the femme for an explanation. _

_"Uh, hi?" she stated, extending her hand while her optics darted around nervously. _

_He reached out and shook her hand firmly but gently, noticing the tightness around her optics and her shaky frame. _

_"Do you need a trip to the Med Bay?" he asked, unable to keep the humor out of his voice._

_"Um, no, I am just nervous," Chromia breathed heavily, "Don't you have duty or something?"_

_"Not really, just passing time," he replied nonchalantly, pressing his digits against a panel on the lift. _

_She giggled and sighed dreamily, not knowing that she was slowly leaning back and a strong arm caught her. Her hands went to her vocalizer as she comprehended what was happening. A fleeting look crossed her features and she struggled to get back on her pedes. _

_"Uh, I, um, gotta get going, I've got early patrol so, um, see you soon," she stuttered, the words rushing out. _

_He just let out a deep chuckle before stepping into the lift and the doors closed and the mechanisms hummed. She continued to stare at the lift doors before she regained her senses and rushed off for her patrol. _

_The lift took him to the streets of Iacon and he had to use his alt form to get to the youngling sectors. The streets were full of frantic mechs who had heard of the recent destruction of Praxus. Ironhide sighed as the local enforcers tried in vain to get the growing crowd to disperse and keep them away from the Autobot headquarters. The golden age of Cybertron have ended when Unicron appeared and all that have followed was chaos, chaos and more chaos. It started out with a small unnamed town in the southern part of Cybertron. Then the Chaos Bringer moved on to cities, the most recent being Praxus. Evacuation of the civilians in nearby cities has already begun, but they were not quick enough. A lot of lives had been lost and the loss of order has started taking its toll on the local militia. Sentinel Prime have already commissioned a classified project and he had been yet to be briefed on it. Weaving through the crowds as quickly as he could, he made it to the youngling sector which was now heavily guarded. Showing his authentication, the guards moved aside and let him pass. Entering the premise, he tasked his processor to scan every level to search for his…youngling. But it turned out that the scan was not necessary as the red and blue youngling bounded on his pedes and scrambled up his guardian's frame nimbly. _

_"I missed you, Papa, why did you leave me here?" Optimus asked, burying his face into Ironhide's chest. _

_"Papa had some important things to tend to," he said, giving Optimus a pat on his helm. _

_"Can we go now?" Optimus asked, optics pleading._

_Ironhide nodded and transformed into his alt mode with Optimus in his interior and exited to the streets. _

_The frigate that was going to take them to the High Council was ready and was parked on a landing pad at the top of the Autobot HQ. Ironhide led Optimus into the frigate and followed by another mech and a guard. Engines flaring, the frigate wobbled and plotted a course for their destination. The civilian-class frigate was not designed for combat and there was no onboard combat station. Ironhide frowned at the lack of defenses, a flying frigate was an extremely huge target for Decepticons. Optimus must have sensed his distress as his helm perked up, blue optics wandering over his guardian. Ironhide smiled and soothed the troubled youngling before turning his attention to the new mech. His Autobot IFF broadcasted his name as Prowl. Accessing the network, he pulled up the file on Prowl. Praxian, Senior Commander, Lead Tactical Officer. Optimus, on the other hand, scuttered across the shuttle and looked at the new arrival. _

_"Who are you?" Optimus asked inquisitively, not taking his optics off the white and black mech. _

_"I am Prowl, and you are?" he replied, voice stoic and distant. _

_"I am Optimus and that is my guardian, Ironhide," Optimus smiled, pointing to the big bulky black mech. _

_Prowl nodded calmly and did not respond further, his optics dilated._

_"Why do you speak so little? Do you hate me?" Optimus asked, distraught. _

_Prowl wanted to speak but Ironhide cut in before he could and placed a hand on the youngling. _

_"No, Prowl does not hate you, he just does not like casual interactions with other mechs," Ironhide explained, comforting the youngling. _

_"Oh, so you don't hate me?" Optimus turned to Prowl._

_"No, I don't hate you," Prowl replied, doorwings tucked non-threateningly. _

_Turning his attention to the youngling's guardian, Prowl addressed the mech formally._

_"My apologies, Ironhide, I did not mean to scare your youngling," Prowl intoned gently._

_Ironhide just nodded his helm and caught the youngling just as the shuttle lurched and took a dive forward, the cabin tilting at an unnatural degree. The starboard engines whined in protest as the pilot corrected the pitch of the shuttle and began the descent into the sacred land below. The land of the Primes. The shuttle gently touched down on a platform after the landing gears kicked in and the airlocks opened. There was an audible hiss as the cabin depressurized and hatches opened. _

_"Welcome to Tyger Pax and have a good orn," the guard onboard ushered the mechs with a wave of his hand. _

A/N: DUN DUN DUN! What will happen next? Oh, and Megatronus Prime will appear in the next chapter! **DUN DUN DUN!**Rate and review guys! Make my day! The more reviews, the faster the next chap comes out. If there are any characters you want to see, just leave a review. It won't kill you, I swear.

Me: I PROMISE TO UPDATE SOON!

Ironhide: Really? *rolls optics*

Me: What?! You doubt me? *Takes out acid blaster*

Ironhide: Eek! Rust! *Makes a dash for exit*

Me: Leave reviews!


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